Think China 2013 | Day 6 – Green in More Ways Than One

Day 6’s collaborative blog post was written by Khristan Antoine [KA] and Ibrahima Mobley [IM], two of the splendid 13 who are part of Think China 2013.

[KA] Today’s lecture was about China’s 12th 5-year plan. Our professor Zhong Xiaomin talked about various reasons why China has established a five year plan. China’s five year plan is mainly structured on slowing down the economic growth to 7% by the year 2015. China is focusing on reconstructing their economy, eliminating social inequality, and protecting their environment.

[KA] In the future, I believe China’s economy will surpass or be on the same economic level as the United States if they have a leader who cares a lot about domestic issues.

[KA] In relation to China’s five year plan, Isaiah Mobley said ”I wonder if the United States has a five year plan?”

Editor’s Note:  Today, a group of Chinese students from a summer camp at the university engaged in conversation and greetings with the Think China 2013 group.  The students were eager and excited to meet people from the US, especially those of African American descent.  Smiles and pictures abounded during the brief interaction between the two groups.

[IM] On Monday, in anticipation for our trip to the Beijing Environmental Protection Base, I did some research on Beijing’s air quality. On day 6, the air was moist and dense. The air quality was at 236 which is very, very unhealthy. On Tuesday, day 4, the sky was clear and the air quality was at 56 which is more enjoyable. So the weather, and the quality of the air, fluctuates a lot.

[IM] At the Beijing Environmental Protection Base, and we learned about their recycling system. China uses about 63% of the world’s coal, which contributes to their air pollution. China does not offer incentives for recycling. This is too bad because I know that I enjoy recycling because I can make money for it and it helps reduce the pollution in the environment.

[IM] “I think the air quality is unacceptable because it is causing the structures to deteriorate faster than they should.” – Anthony Gallon

[IM] Next, we went to the Bird’s Nest, which is the stadium where they hosted the 2008 Olympic Games. The structures were very beautiful to look at, but I did notice that there was plenty of rust and on the high beams and it looked like it had been deteriorating for more than the 5 years since the games. I was told that this was due to the air pollution problem. Beijing is a very beautiful city but if something is not done about the pollution issue, both China’s people and structures will suffer.